Chaos And Creation In The Back Yard
Capitol Records, 2005
REVIEW BY: Jeff Clutterbuck
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: 10/04/2005
Let's face it; at this point in his career, Paul McCartney does not have to record one more note. He's one of those musicians who has reached that plateau and won't be forgotten for a long time.
Of course, he was a Beatle, and that's the primary reason. With the exception of a few albums, McCartney's work has not even come close to rivaling what he did with the Beatles. Luckily for us, with Chaos And Creation, at times he comes as close as he ever has.
I should point out that this is not a Beatles album. Do not buy this disc if you are looking for Revolver II. Nor is Chaos And Creation Band on the Run part II. This album hearkens back to the simple homegrown efforts of McCartney or Ram. The focus here is on the singer/songwriter aspect of McCartney's skills.
Unlike some of his cotemporaries, Macca's voice has remained quite strong and still possesses that youthful quality. When he reaches for the falsetto on Chaos And Creation (" Jenny Wren," "A Certain Softness,") it comes up strong. Adding onto those strong vocals is the fact that this album really was a solo effort in every sense of the word. Not counting the orchestral arrangements, McCartney played almost every instrument on 10 of the 13 tracks. What's even more impressive is that you can't tell this was one man performing.
The leadoff track and single, "Fine Line," is a throwback to "Lady Madonna" and "Get Back." Believe me, once you hear the refrain, you will want to play the song over and over again. The fact that the song is this good and probably did not take a great deal of effort for Paul is maddening. The soothing, flowing "Too Much Rain," is another stellar effort, with an opening piano riffs and bass line that define the "McCartney Sound."
What else does Chaos and Creation have to offer? For starters, McCartney actually "branches out" a bit on a few songs. Identifiable riffs and catchy hooks are nowhere to be found on "At The Mercy" or "How Kind Of You;" the complexities of the songs are what grab the attention. Usually, it's the details on a Macca album that make or break the work. At times, this is a difficult listen for what people expect from Paul McCartney because it is so different.
So let's see here; The Stones are back and so is Paul McCartney. Not only did we get albums from them in the same month, but both released better albums than anyone expected at this point in their career. Quite a September, don't you think?
I love this album and I'm not a big Macca fan or even The Beatles. The best song here is "Riding To Vanity Fair", maybe a stab a Heather... I love the way his singing, just easy and not doing too much as he has in the past. "English Tea" kina reminds me of Elanor Rigby, don't know why but it does, similar in style but much lighter lyrics. A definate A from me and I think it's his best solo effort, ever. Jack. |